My old boss told me to never use a torque wrench on a threaded bottom bracket

He said it was a waste of time and to just feel it out. I followed that for a long time until I cracked a carbon frame shell last month. The replacement cost the customer $1,200. Now I torque every single one to spec, no exceptions. Anyone else have a shop rule they learned the hard way to ignore?

3 comments

3 Comments

ivan_mason21h agoMost Upvoted

So that carbon frame you cracked, was it a press fit or threaded bottom bracket? I'm just wondering if the type of shell made it more likely to fail from over tightening by hand.

wadem896d ago

My old shop manager had the same rule about headset preload. He said you just tighten until the play is gone. I followed that and ended up creasing the head tube on a nice aluminum frame. That was a $900 lesson in why the torque wrench exists. Now I even torque my water bottle cages.

christopherwilson5d ago

Tightened a carbon steerer once by feel and heard a tiny crack. Nearly had a heart attack. Now I use a torque wrench for anything that holds the bike together, no exceptions. That click is the sound of not buying a new frame. Even my stem bolts get the full treatment.